3 Lessons Learnt By Bootstrapping My Startup

11 May 2016

In the era of venture capital funds flying all over the place, here's what we've learnt by bootstrapping our startup.

Laser eyed focus

Know your constraints and drill down to the core. When you have barely enough, you’ll find the most important aspect of your business. The same applies to survival, when luxuries disappear, you try not to starve, when food disappears, hydration is next, and when it gets extremely critical, oxygen.

The same for your business, identify your oxygen, then search for water then hunt for food. Focus.

Customers are your investors

Revenue is king, it empowers you to do much more. You are not a funded startup, quit thinking like one. Your funding comes from your customers. Spend your time and effort on them and they will be your best investors. Period.

9 out of 10 startups fail, growth is not revenue. If you’re dependant on VC funding, you cease to exist when funding stops. Your growth would mean nothing and you would have to let your employees go one by one. Let that sink in. Your customers are your best investors.

Cost is a double edged sword

Be very aware of your cost, monetary and time, know where every unit is going. Everything has a cost, and when something has a cost, it better generate returns. As you start growing and revenue comes in, it is easy to become complacent. We naturally think we can afford more and that is when we start digging our own graves. It happened to us, don’t let it happen to you.

Have more to share? Please feel free to drop me a mail or leave a comment.